COLLECTIVE MADNESS


“Soft despotism is a term coined by Alexis de Tocqueville describing the state into which a country overrun by "a network of small complicated rules" might degrade. Soft despotism is different from despotism (also called 'hard despotism') in the sense that it is not obvious to the people."

Sunday, April 19, 2009

More Susan Boyle

52 comments:

  1. No doubt about it, she can sing but so can Diana Krall and ...

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  2. and Ms Krall, well...

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  3. Whit's gal is Purtier.

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  4. Mo doable, if you will.

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  5. Girls that wear stuff around their ankles drive me mad.

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  6. A beautiful graceful feminine form is surely a thing to behold, a gift of the gods.

    A poet said once, the eternal feminine draws us apes furtherwards.

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  8. Slip This Puppy on a mature American woman, one that knows her stuff, one that knows how to lounge at ease, one whose light dress blows lightly with the spring breeze, one that is literary, one that knows in her beautiful bones that the gods have come to live and rest in her, then you got an American male with a hard on.

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  9. Ahh, Bob, I knowed you was one'a THEM.

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  10. I'm a little worried about an Ideehoan that knows where to "shop" for wimmins' shoes. heh, heh

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  11. Ruf, I know you, you ain't no queer, and I bet my last dollar, you like a good ankled woman too!

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  12. Rufus,
    Maybe we should send ABC News Jake (tap tap) Tapper out to investigate the story.
    Good Man.

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  13. Redefining Capitalism After the Fall---
    President Obama is hinting at an audacious ambition as he waits for that inevitable if distant day that the recession will end.
    ---
    He would redistribute wealth toward the middle class and make the rest of the world less dependent on the American market for its prosperity. And he would seek a consensus recognizing that an activist government is an acceptable and necessary partner for a stable, market-based economy.

    “We cannot rebuild this economy on the same pile of sand,” he said last week.

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  14. New foundations are required, doug.

    A whole new foundation.
    To stabilize our 5 pillars of growth.

    There is no thoughtful commentary worthy of the proposal.

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  15. Obama plans credit-card push.

    By MIKE ALLEN & HARRY SIEGEL.

    White House economic adviser Larry Summers told NBC’s “Meet the Press” that President Obama plans to join a push planned by congressional Democrats on “credit card abuses” as part of looking out for the little guy while rebuilding the nation’s financial system.

    "We need to do things to stop the marketing of credit in ways that addicts people to it," Summers said.

    Summers told moderator David Gregory that Obama is concerned about “the way people have been deceived into paying extraordinarily high rates that they wouldn't have paid if they knew what they were getting themselves into.”

    On other matters, Summers said he was “surprised” by the outpouring of conservative rage on Tax Day that took the form of mock “tea parties” around the country.

    “You know, I don't know that much about politics, but I’ve been surprised by these tea parties a bit,” Summer said. “The President is the one proposing cutting taxes on virtually all Americans, so I'm not sure who these tea parties see as being King George."

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  16. Obama's '5 pillars' proposals.
    April 15, 2009

    The key to a bright, sustainable future for the U.S. economy, President Obama said, is a "foundation built upon five pillars," each of which represents a massive policy shift that is sure to set off a major political battle. His proposals:

    * New rules for Wall Street

    Fundamentally rewrite financial regulations to "reward drive and innovation, not reckless risk-taking" and give government the authority to monitor institutions that could pose "systemic" risk to the whole system if they get into trouble. Obama called for legislation by year-end.

    * Investment in education

    Focus on boosting early childhood education, improving test scores and providing tax credits to make a college education more affordable.

    * Investment in renewable energy and technology

    Ratchet up the stimulus bill's spending on energy technology and "green" public works that will safeguard the environment and reduce dependence on foreign oil while generating thousands of jobs for U.S. workers.

    * Healthcare reform

    Revamp the healthcare system to improve quality and make medical care more affordable for every American without increasing the federal deficit.

    * Deficit reduction

    Root out waste and redundancy, as well as contain healthcare and other entitlement costs.

    --Michael Oneal--

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  17. The Sting, In Four Parts.

    By Charles Krauthammer
    Friday, April 17, 2009
    .
    Franklin Roosevelt gave us the New Deal. John Kennedy gave us the New Frontier. In a major domestic policy address at Georgetown University this week, Barack Obama promised -- eight times -- a "New Foundation." For those too thick to have noticed this proclamation of a new era in American history, the White House Web site helpfully titled its speech excerpts "A New Foundation."

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  18. The core truths remain viable, the folks that attacked the United States of America are in Pakistan, being sheltered by the Pakistani government.

    The US is making a half-hearted effort to obtain justice and the heads of the miscreants. Half-hearted in comparison to either the effort or treasure put forth to bribe the Sons of Iraq.

    The pursuit of Osama was back burner stuff, just look at the expeditures for proof.

    Obama is pursuing the Bush Legacy, in Iraq, while ramping up in Afghanistan. Which may or may not be a precursor to hunting Osama and Doc Z with a bigger budget.

    The consolidation of North America continues apace. Mexico and US agreeing to ever more cross-border cooperation.

    Immigration reform will pass, the swing votes were in the Senate were lost. The Unions and Chamber of Commerace have signed on. Whether there is a high end work permit available is the negotiating point. Without a low-end guest worker program the migrants will continue to trek north, without US papers or permit.

    What thoughtful commentary is applicable?

    It's more fun to dunk trish's pigtails in the inkwell.

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  19. I think that Fred Barnes and rufus are both right about Obamacare. The GOP will fall short, proving their further irrelevance to the process, for at least 2 years, more likely 4.

    By that time there will no turning back the clock. Health Insurance will be on the road to Nationalization. There is no viable contstituent base to stop it.

    Iowa will get some more corn ethanol price supports. Payback being what it is, Chi-town style.

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  20. Democratic Education Reform is a NEA empowerment act. We both know that.

    The pillars we'll build upon our new foundation... well ... We're not rebuilding on sand, not without some major pilings driven home, first.

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  21. While this is what the majority of Americans think of , when a piledriver is mentioned.

    Piledrive those deficits into surpluses, we will, if our foundation is sound.

    All wrapped into "fixing" the Fed induced liquidity crisis.
    Because we have to something!

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  22. Fox is already cowering down to the President .....

    In response to President Obama's complaint that FOX News doesn't show enough Black and Hispanic people on their network, FOX has announced
    that they will now air "America's Most Wanted" TWICE a week.

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  23. And since, back in the day, doug, when I was making thoughtful comments, there was little joy in it, but now, now that the reality of Obama has vindicated my early BC prognostications ....

    I just gotta enjoy the ride on the slide.

    All the more since my own elected Representitives and the Governor, are Republicans.

    The last GOP Standard Bearer being my senior Senator. Mr Shaddegg one of the most Republican of the Republican Congressmen.

    What happens in FL and PA, well, that's where our hosts reside. The States in the balance. An open Senate seat and an incumbent that is not a popular man, amongst real Republicans. Our dear doug, lives in HI, a Democratic rock in American Polynesia.

    That's where the battle lays, not here in the Valley of the Sun, here, we've already won, holding the light of liberty for all you Blue State victims to rally to.

    So drop your cocks and grab your socks, it's Reveille and there's work for you boys to undertake.

    Me, I'll just rest on the laurels of living in one of the last Republican strongholds. Even if there are more Dem Congressmen than GOP, over all. They're not representin' MY District, no Dems in my back yard.

    Just in the neighborhood bowling league.

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  24. You can always move to my state, Rat, just not to my district here, about the only democratic place in the whole state.

    But we've got plenty of mountains, deserts, riverine valleys that will accept a Libertarian. You'd fit right in.

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  25. Idaho, my dear old Idaho

    You're the Queen of all the West

    sing, with gusto, and repeat......

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  26. Unless, of course, you all choose to
    "Arm Up and Hunker Down"

    But then Obama's full court press scores, considerable, those points never coming off the board, once they're up.

    Incremental growth, the Federals never have stepped back, once they stepped in, they won't stop now.

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  27. I'll stay here, until I slide south to the beach, bob, but thanks for the pleasent thought.

    It's 93F here, today.

    Snowbirds will be flyin' north.

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  28. Then the boys at PJ Media, at least they aren't blinded.
    They cruise and lurk in the EB comments, guarenteed.

    For years they left their ad space blank, it was mentioned here, one time, as a sign of their lack of marketing experience. Next time I checked 'em out, there were ads for their TV programing, in what had always been blamk space.

    And they didn't even give a h/t, doug.

    But maybe it helps them, regardless.

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  29. Priest Lake.

    77' and sunny in Adelaide today.

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  30. I swear Fox News cruise the EB. Multiple times I have seen Fox News headlines that we're mentioned here the day before. And the way they report it. Striking similarities.

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  31. The only time I have ever seen a cougar in the wild was on the north shore of Priest.

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  32. The prices of real estate around these north Idaho lakes have gone crazy.

    The asking prices are absurd, but I don't think anyone is buying.

    On our recent trip the wife and I found a decent cabin on Pond d Oreille for a little under $400,000thousand, but I think right now nothing much is selling.

    They have condos in Coeur d Alene for around $800,000, which is absurd.

    You'd have to be nuts to buy one of those.

    You can go up a couple of blocks in the old part of town and buy a decent house for a $150,000, you'd have to be a moron to buy one of those condos.

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  33. That's a big price gap between a couple of blocks, for sure.

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  34. Now, next year, have all those Taxin' Tea Partiers file extensions, while having underpaid on their witholding all year long.

    Get a million folks to owe and not pay, in concert, well then you'd gain the attention of the Government, one way or another.

    But since most folks seem to get refunds, I'm not sure how anxious they'll be to take that hit to their personal fortunes.

    Despite pledging their sacred honor to the "Cause".

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  35. We used to have bear on the shore of Coeur d Alene, and I remember a wolf howling when I was a kid.

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  36. Sam, Hagedorn's condos are asking $800,000.

    It's nuts. You can go a couple blocks back and buy a house for $150,000, no shit.

    It's crazy.

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  37. Ooh Bob, a shoe fetish? I am impressed. I knew I liked you for a reason.

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  38. The Obama administration inherited more than just a bunch of bad environmental regulations from the Bush administration, some of which still need fixing. It also inherited a strange anomaly: holdover court cases in which President Obama’s Justice Department finds itself at odds with positions that Mr. Obama espouses.

    ...

    Still a third case, in district court in Idaho, involves the proposed expansion of a phosphate mine in a roadless area in southeastern Idaho, near Yellowstone National Park. Environmental groups say the mine would poison local waters and has not been subjected to environmental review as required by law.

    The Bush Justice Department argued otherwise, and so far the department has not changed its tune even though the mine represents exactly the sort of environmental trespass Mr. Obama pledged to avoid.
    Same Page

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  39. Ooh Bob, a shoe fetish? I am impressed. I knew I liked you for a reasonYes darling.

    Just between you and me.

    Can you come over some night?

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  41. Sometime between the rising of the moon, and the howling of the coyote?

    I'll meet you then.

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  42. I testify that I heard a wolf howl one time, in a valley of Idaho, that chilled my very blood, and froze me very bones.

    If you've heard one of those babies, you know what I'm talkin' about.

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  43. Well, bob, up on the Mogollon Rim, around the Stoneman Lake area we've got large elk herds, black bears and mountain lion.
    Seen mountain lions 3 times in 35 years, so it's not a real common occurance. Unless you're out huntin' 'em with dogs. Even then, it's an event.

    Bear are more prevalent, all along the Rim Country.

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  44. I might even nibble your toes, MLD, how would you like that? hmmm?

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